SUs Cooney, Keita play big in win against Georgetown

NEW YORK  If someone would have told you three days ago that Baye Moussa Keita and Trevor Cooney would play key roles in Syracuses incredible run to the Big East Conference championship game, they probably would have had their head examined.

But, with their top players struggling, and the Orange in need of a lift in Fridays semifinals against top-seeded Georgetown, the junior backup center and the redshirt freshman guard came off the bench to help spark a 58-55 overtime win over the Hoyas.

Keita, averaging just 15.3 minutes and only 3.3 points per game, scored 13 huge points and grabbed eight rebounds in a career-high 41 minutes.The Orange built a double-digit lead, squandered it in the last few minutes of regulation and then won in overtime.

Cooney, who was supposed to give the Orange a lift with his outside shooting, had been a huge disappointment. He averaged just 11.7 minutes, and struggled from long range, hitting only 31 percent of his 3-pointers. But he scored 10 first-half points, making two of three from beyond the arc, and grabbed four rebounds during his strong 15-minute stint.

What can you say but they saved us today and were the best players on the court for long stretches, SU coach Jim Boeheim said. Baye was unbelievable. He really fought hard against a very physical team. And Trevor finally showed us what weve been seeing in practice all season.

Keita was especially clutch at the foul line, where he came in making just 49 percent of his shots. Friday, he went 7-for-7, including four clutch free throws in the final 2½ minutes of regulation as the Orange held on for dear life.

I just try to play as hard as I can for as long as I can, said Keita, who hails from Senegal. Today, my teammates really needed me to be tough and aggressive. And Ive been working really hard in practice with coach (Mike) Hopkins on my free throws. He used to make fun of me out there. But now Im shooting with a lot more confidence and I can picture the ball going in.

Keita plays behind starter Rakeem Christmas, who was ineffective in his four-minute action with no points and no rebounds.Rak had a tough day, so I was my turn to help him out, Keita said. Tomorrow, it could be him that has a big game.

As for Cooney, he has never found a shooting rhythm from day one after sitting out his freshman season a year ago. But that did not deter the Wilmington, Delaware, native from staying positive.

Ive practiced hard and today it finally produced results, said Cooney, who hit double figures for the first time since Dec. 31 against Central Connecticut. At times, Ive felt like I let the team and my coaches down. But theyve been very supportive and encouraging, so I had to do something when they needed me.

Senior guard Brandon Triche said hes never seen Cooney discouraged or down on himself. Thats a credit to his character and his faith in his game. To do that on such a big stage, Im really happy for him.

BOEHEIM CREDITS ASSISTANTS

When the Orange arrived home from last Saturdays 61-39 pasting at Georgetown, Boeheim gathered his assistants together for a bull session on what could be done to turn the recent struggles around.

Boeheim said after Fridays semifinal win, its those guys who really got the players believing in themselves and put in so many hours of hard work in the few days before we came to New York.

The assistants  Mike Hopkins, Adrian Autry and Gerry McNamara  spent a good part of that time trying to repair the wounded psyche of the Orange, which had lost seven of its final 12 Big East Conference games.

It was more of a tutorial on what we needed to do to be successful again, and trying to make the most of every possession on offense anddefense, Hopkins said. Give all the credit to the players.

The players bought into what the assistants were saying, and really changed their attitude, Hopkins said. They came in here a lot more confident and believing in themselves and their teammates.

ODDS AND ENDS

SU and Georgetown have played the most games in the 34-year history of the event. SU is now 50-28, while Georgetown is a Big East best 51-27.SU is now 4-1 in semifinal matchups with Georgetown, and the tournament series is tied 7-7.

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